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dos Santos SR, Rohmer E. Soft Sensory-Motor System Based on Ionic Solution for Robotic Applications. Sensors (Basel) 2024; 24:2900. [PMID: 38733007 PMCID: PMC11086320 DOI: 10.3390/s24092900] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2024] [Revised: 04/16/2024] [Accepted: 04/25/2024] [Indexed: 05/13/2024]
Abstract
Soft robots claim the architecture of actuators, sensors, and computation demands with their soft bodies by obtaining fast responses and adapting to the environment. Sensory-motor coordination is one of the main design principles utilized for soft robots because it allows the capability to sense and actuate mutually in the environment, thereby achieving rapid response performance. This work intends to study the response for a system that presents coupled actuation and sensing functions simultaneously and is integrated in an arbitrary elastic structure with ionic conduction elements, called as soft sensory-motor system based on ionic solution (SSMS-IS). This study provides a comparative analysis of the performance of SSMS-IS prototypes with three diverse designs: toroidal, semi-toroidal, and rectangular geometries, based on a series of performance experiments, such as sensitivity, drift, and durability. The design with the best performance was the rectangular SSMS-IS using silicon rubber RPRO20 for both internal and external pressures applied in the system. Moreover, this work explores the performance of a bioinspired soft robot using rectangular SSMS-IS elements integrated in its body. Further, it investigated the feasibility of the robot to adapt its morphology online for environment variability, responding to external stimuli from the environment with different levels of stiffness and damping.
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Dvorak N, Liu Z, Mouthuy PA. Soft bioreactor systems: a necessary step toward engineered MSK soft tissue? Front Robot AI 2024; 11:1287446. [PMID: 38711813 PMCID: PMC11070535 DOI: 10.3389/frobt.2024.1287446] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2023] [Accepted: 03/12/2024] [Indexed: 05/08/2024] Open
Abstract
A key objective of tissue engineering (TE) is to produce in vitro funcional grafts that can replace damaged tissues or organs in patients. TE uses bioreactors, which are controlled environments, allowing the application of physical and biochemical cues to relevant cells growing in biomaterials. For soft musculoskeletal (MSK) tissues such as tendons, ligaments and cartilage, it is now well established that applied mechanical stresses can be incorporated into those bioreactor systems to support tissue growth and maturation via activation of mechanotransduction pathways. However, mechanical stresses applied in the laboratory are often oversimplified compared to those found physiologically and may be a factor in the slow progression of engineered MSK grafts towards the clinic. In recent years, an increasing number of studies have focused on the application of complex loading conditions, applying stresses of different types and direction on tissue constructs, in order to better mimic the cellular environment experienced in vivo. Such studies have highlighted the need to improve upon traditional rigid bioreactors, which are often limited to uniaxial loading, to apply physiologically relevant multiaxial stresses and elucidate their influence on tissue maturation. To address this need, soft bioreactors have emerged. They employ one or more soft components, such as flexible soft chambers that can twist and bend with actuation, soft compliant actuators that can bend with the construct, and soft sensors which record measurements in situ. This review examines types of traditional rigid bioreactors and their shortcomings, and highlights recent advances of soft bioreactors in MSK TE. Challenges and future applications of such systems are discussed, drawing attention to the exciting prospect of these platforms and their ability to aid development of functional soft tissue engineered grafts.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Pierre-Alexis Mouthuy
- Botnar Institute of Musculoskeletal Sciences, Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
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Grezmak J, Daltorio KA. Probing with Each Step: How a Walking Crab-like Robot Classifies Buried Cylinders in Sand with Hall-Effect Sensors. Sensors (Basel) 2024; 24:1579. [PMID: 38475115 DOI: 10.3390/s24051579] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2024] [Revised: 02/24/2024] [Accepted: 02/27/2024] [Indexed: 03/14/2024]
Abstract
Shallow underwater environments around the world are contaminated with unexploded ordnances (UXOs). Current state-of-the-art methods for UXO detection and localization use remote sensing systems. Furthermore, human divers are often tasked with confirming UXO existence and retrieval which poses health and safety hazards. In this paper, we describe the application of a crab robot with leg-embedded Hall effect-based sensors to detect and distinguish between UXOs and non-magnetic objects partially buried in sand. The sensors consist of Hall-effect magnetometers and permanent magnets embedded in load bearing compliant segments. The magnetometers are sensitive to magnetic objects in close proximity to the legs and their movement relative to embedded magnets, allowing for both proximity and force-related feedback in dynamically obtained measurements. A dataset of three-axis measurements is collected as the robot steps near and over different UXOs and UXO-like objects, and a convolutional neural network is trained on time domain inputs and evaluated by 5-fold cross validation. Additionally, we propose a novel method for interpreting the importance of measurements in the time domain for the trained classifier. The results demonstrate the potential for accurate and efficient UXO and non-UXO discrimination in the field.
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Affiliation(s)
- John Grezmak
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA
| | - Kathryn A Daltorio
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA
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4
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Sirithunge C, Wang H, Iida F. Soft touchless sensors and touchless sensing for soft robots. Front Robot AI 2024; 11:1224216. [PMID: 38312746 PMCID: PMC10830750 DOI: 10.3389/frobt.2024.1224216] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2023] [Accepted: 01/02/2024] [Indexed: 02/06/2024] Open
Abstract
Soft robots are characterized by their mechanical compliance, making them well-suited for various bio-inspired applications. However, the challenge of preserving their flexibility during deployment has necessitated using soft sensors which can enhance their mobility, energy efficiency, and spatial adaptability. Through emulating the structure, strategies, and working principles of human senses, soft robots can detect stimuli without direct contact with soft touchless sensors and tactile stimuli. This has resulted in noteworthy progress within the field of soft robotics. Nevertheless, soft, touchless sensors offer the advantage of non-invasive sensing and gripping without the drawbacks linked to physical contact. Consequently, the popularity of soft touchless sensors has grown in recent years, as they facilitate intuitive and safe interactions with humans, other robots, and the surrounding environment. This review explores the emerging confluence of touchless sensing and soft robotics, outlining a roadmap for deployable soft robots to achieve human-level dexterity.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Huijiang Wang
- Bio-Inspired Robotics Lab, Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
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Han C, Jeong Y, Ahn J, Kim T, Choi J, Ha J, Kim H, Hwang SH, Jeon S, Ahn J, Hong JT, Kim JJ, Jeong J, Park I. Recent Advances in Sensor-Actuator Hybrid Soft Systems: Core Advantages, Intelligent Applications, and Future Perspectives. Adv Sci (Weinh) 2023; 10:e2302775. [PMID: 37752815 PMCID: PMC10724400 DOI: 10.1002/advs.202302775] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2023] [Revised: 08/17/2023] [Indexed: 09/28/2023]
Abstract
The growing demand for soft intelligent systems, which have the potential to be used in a variety of fields such as wearable technology and human-robot interaction systems, has spurred the development of advanced soft transducers. Among soft systems, sensor-actuator hybrid systems are considered the most promising due to their effective and efficient performance, resulting from the synergistic and complementary interaction between their sensor and actuator components. Recent research on integrated sensor and actuator systems has resulted in a range of conceptual and practical soft systems. This review article provides a comprehensive analysis of recent advances in sensor and actuator integrated systems, which are grouped into three categories based on their primary functions: i) actuator-assisted sensors for intelligent detection, ii) sensor-assisted actuators for intelligent movement, and iii) sensor-actuator interactive devices for a hybrid of intelligent detection and movement. In addition, several bottlenecks in current studies are discussed, and prospective outlooks, including potential applications, are presented. This categorization and analysis will pave the way for the advancement and commercialization of sensor and actuator-integrated systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chankyu Han
- Department of Mechanical EngineeringKorea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)Daejeon34141Republic of Korea
| | - Yongrok Jeong
- Department of Mechanical EngineeringKorea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)Daejeon34141Republic of Korea
- Department of Nano Manufacturing TechnologyKorea Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM)Daejeon34103Republic of Korea
- Radioisotope Research DivisionKorea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI)Daejeon34057Republic of Korea
| | - Junseong Ahn
- Department of Nano Manufacturing TechnologyKorea Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM)Daejeon34103Republic of Korea
| | - Taehwan Kim
- Department of Mechanical EngineeringKorea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)Daejeon34141Republic of Korea
| | - Jungrak Choi
- Department of Mechanical EngineeringKorea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)Daejeon34141Republic of Korea
| | - Ji‐Hwan Ha
- Department of Mechanical EngineeringKorea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)Daejeon34141Republic of Korea
| | - Hyunjin Kim
- Department of Mechanical EngineeringKorea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)Daejeon34141Republic of Korea
| | - Soon Hyoung Hwang
- Department of Nano Manufacturing TechnologyKorea Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM)Daejeon34103Republic of Korea
| | - Sohee Jeon
- Department of Nano Manufacturing TechnologyKorea Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM)Daejeon34103Republic of Korea
| | - Jihyeon Ahn
- Department of Mechanical EngineeringKorea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)Daejeon34141Republic of Korea
| | - Jin Tae Hong
- Radioisotope Research DivisionKorea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI)Daejeon34057Republic of Korea
| | - Jin Joo Kim
- Radioisotope Research DivisionKorea Atomic Energy Research Institute (KAERI)Daejeon34057Republic of Korea
| | - Jun‐Ho Jeong
- Department of Nano Manufacturing TechnologyKorea Institute of Machinery and Materials (KIMM)Daejeon34103Republic of Korea
| | - Inkyu Park
- Department of Mechanical EngineeringKorea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST)Daejeon34141Republic of Korea
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Recio-Colmenares R, León Becerril E, Gurubel Tun KJ, Conchas RF. Design of a Soft Sensor Based on Long Short-Term Memory Artificial Neural Network (LSTM) for Wastewater Treatment Plants. Sensors (Basel) 2023; 23:9236. [PMID: 38005622 PMCID: PMC10674207 DOI: 10.3390/s23229236] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2023] [Revised: 11/11/2023] [Accepted: 11/13/2023] [Indexed: 11/26/2023]
Abstract
Assessment of wastewater effluent quality in terms of physicochemical and microbial parameters is a difficult task; therefore, an online method which combines the variables and represents a final value as the quality index could be used as a useful management tool for decision makers. However, conventional measurement methods often have limitations, such as time-consuming processes and high associated costs, which hinder efficient and practical monitoring. Therefore, this study presents an approach that underscores the importance of using both short- and long-term memory networks (LSTM) to enhance monitoring capabilities within wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). The use of LSTM networks for soft sensor design is presented as a promising solution for accurate variable estimation to quantify effluent quality using the total chemical oxygen demand (TCOD) quality index. For the realization of this work, we first generated a dataset that describes the behavior of the activated sludge system in discrete time. Then, we developed a deep LSTM network structure as a basis for formulating the LSTM-based soft sensor model. The results demonstrate that this structure produces high-precision predictions for the concentrations of soluble X1 and solid X2 substrates in the wastewater treatment system. After hyperparameter optimization, the predictive capacity of the proposed model is optimized, with average values of performance metrics, mean square error (MSE), coefficient of determination (R2), and mean absolute percentage error (MAPE), of 23.38, 0.97, and 1.31 for X1, and 9.74, 0.93, and 1.89 for X2, respectively. According to the results, the proposed LSTM-based soft sensor can be a valuable tool for determining effluent quality index in wastewater treatment systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roxana Recio-Colmenares
- Environmental Technology Department, Centro de Investigación y Asistencia en Tecnología y Diseño del Estado de Jalisco, A.C., Av. Normalistas 800, Colinas de la Normal, Guadalajara 44270, Jalisco, Mexico
| | - Elizabeth León Becerril
- Environmental Technology Department, Centro de Investigación y Asistencia en Tecnología y Diseño del Estado de Jalisco, A.C., Av. Normalistas 800, Colinas de la Normal, Guadalajara 44270, Jalisco, Mexico
| | - Kelly Joel Gurubel Tun
- School of Engineering and Technological Innovation, University of Guadalajara, Campus Tonalá, Tonalá 45425, Jalisco, Mexico
| | - Robin F Conchas
- Electrical Engineering Department, Research Center and Advanced Studies of Instituto Politécnico Nacional (CINVESTAV), Unidad Guadalajara, Av. del Bosque 1145, El Bajío, Zapopan 45017, Jalisco, Mexico
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7
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Georgopoulou A, Hardman D, Thuruthel TG, Iida F, Clemens F. Sensorized Skin With Biomimetic Tactility Features Based on Artificial Cross-Talk of Bimodal Resistive Sensory Inputs. Adv Sci (Weinh) 2023; 10:e2301590. [PMID: 37679081 PMCID: PMC10602557 DOI: 10.1002/advs.202301590] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2023] [Revised: 05/15/2023] [Indexed: 09/09/2023]
Abstract
Tactility in biological organisms is a faculty that relies on a variety of specialized receptors. The bimodal sensorized skin, featured in this study, combines soft resistive composites that attribute the skin with mechano- and thermoreceptive capabilities. Mimicking the position of the different natural receptors in different depths of the skin layers, a multi-layer arrangement of the soft resistive composites is achieved. However, the magnitude of the signal response and the localization ability of the stimulus change with lighter presses of the bimodal skin. Hence, a learning-based approach is employed that can help achieve predictions about the stimulus using 4500 probes. Similar to the cognitive functions in the human brain, the cross-talk of sensory information between the two types of sensory information allows the learning architecture to make more accurate predictions of localization, depth, and temperature of the stimulus contiguously. Localization accuracies of 1.8 mm, depth errors of 0.22 mm, and temperature errors of 8.2 °C using 8 mechanoreceptive and 8 thermoreceptive sensing elements are achieved for the smaller inter-element distances. Combining the bimodal sensing multilayer skins with the neural network learning approach brings the artificial tactile interface one step closer to imitating the sensory capabilities of biological skin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonia Georgopoulou
- Department of Functional MaterialsEmpa ‐ Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology8600Switzerland
| | - David Hardman
- Bio‐Inspired Robotics LabDepartment of EngineeringUniversity of CambridgeCB2 1PZUK
| | - Thomas George Thuruthel
- Bio‐Inspired Robotics LabDepartment of EngineeringUniversity of CambridgeCB2 1PZUK
- Department of Computer ScienceUniversity College LondonE20 2AFUK
| | - Fumiya Iida
- Bio‐Inspired Robotics LabDepartment of EngineeringUniversity of CambridgeCB2 1PZUK
| | - Frank Clemens
- Department of Functional MaterialsEmpa ‐ Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology8600Switzerland
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Sifakis N, Sarantinoudis N, Tsinarakis G, Politis C, Arampatzis G. Soft Sensing of LPG Processes Using Deep Learning. Sensors (Basel) 2023; 23:7858. [PMID: 37765914 PMCID: PMC10534704 DOI: 10.3390/s23187858] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2023] [Revised: 09/05/2023] [Accepted: 09/08/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023]
Abstract
This study investigates the integration of soft sensors and deep learning in the oil-refinery industry to improve monitoring efficiency and predictive accuracy in complex industrial processes, particularly de-ethanization and debutanization. Soft sensor models were developed to estimate critical variables such as the C2 and C5 contents in liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) after distillation and the energy consumption of distillation columns. The refinery's LPG purification process relies on periodic sampling and laboratory analysis to maintain product specifications. The models were tested using data from actual refinery operations, addressing challenges such as scalability and handling dirty data. Two deep learning models, an artificial neural network (ANN) soft sensor model and an ensemble random forest regressor (RFR) model, were developed. This study emphasizes model interpretability and the potential for real-time updating or online learning. The study also proposes a comprehensive, iterative solution for predicting and optimizing component concentrations within a dual-column distillation system, highlighting its high applicability and potential for replication in similar industrial scenarios.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikolaos Sifakis
- Industrial and Digital Innovations Research Group (INDIGO), School of Production Engineering and Management, Akrotiri Campus, Technical University of Crete, 73100 Chania, Greece
| | - Nikolaos Sarantinoudis
- Industrial and Digital Innovations Research Group (INDIGO), School of Production Engineering and Management, Akrotiri Campus, Technical University of Crete, 73100 Chania, Greece
| | - George Tsinarakis
- Industrial and Digital Innovations Research Group (INDIGO), School of Production Engineering and Management, Akrotiri Campus, Technical University of Crete, 73100 Chania, Greece
| | - Christos Politis
- Industrial and Digital Innovations Research Group (INDIGO), School of Production Engineering and Management, Akrotiri Campus, Technical University of Crete, 73100 Chania, Greece
| | - George Arampatzis
- Industrial and Digital Innovations Research Group (INDIGO), School of Production Engineering and Management, Akrotiri Campus, Technical University of Crete, 73100 Chania, Greece
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Shu J, Wang J, Cheng KCC, Yeung LF, Li Z, Tong RKY. An End-to-End Dynamic Posture Perception Method for Soft Actuators Based on Distributed Thin Flexible Porous Piezoresistive Sensors. Sensors (Basel) 2023; 23:6189. [PMID: 37448037 DOI: 10.3390/s23136189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2023] [Revised: 06/30/2023] [Accepted: 07/03/2023] [Indexed: 07/15/2023]
Abstract
This paper proposes a method for accurate 3D posture sensing of the soft actuators, which could be applied to the closed-loop control of soft robots. To achieve this, the method employs an array of miniaturized sponge resistive materials along the soft actuator, which uses long short-term memory (LSTM) neural networks to solve the end-to-end 3D posture for the soft actuators. The method takes into account the hysteresis of the soft robot and non-linear sensing signals from the flexible bending sensors. The proposed approach uses a flexible bending sensor made from a thin layer of conductive sponge material designed for posture sensing. The LSTM network is used to model the posture of the soft actuator. The effectiveness of the method has been demonstrated on a finger-size 3 degree of freedom (DOF) pneumatic bellow-shaped actuator, with nine flexible sponge resistive sensors placed on the soft actuator's outer surface. The sensor-characterizing results show that the maximum bending torque of the sensor installed on the actuator is 4.7 Nm, which has an insignificant impact on the actuator motion based on the working space test of the actuator. Moreover, the sensors exhibit a relatively low error rate in predicting the actuator tip position, with error percentages of 0.37%, 2.38%, and 1.58% along the x-, y-, and z-axes, respectively. This work is expected to contribute to the advancement of soft robot dynamic posture perception by using thin sponge sensors and LSTM or other machine learning methods for control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Shu
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
| | - Junming Wang
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
| | - Kenneth Chik-Chi Cheng
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
- Research Institute for Sports Science and Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
| | - Ling-Fung Yeung
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
| | - Zheng Li
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
- Department of Surgery, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
| | - Raymond Kai-Yu Tong
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR 999077, China
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Yu T, Tao Y, Wu Y, Zhang D, Yang J, Ge G. Heterogeneous Multi-Material Flexible Piezoresistive Sensor with High Sensitivity and Wide Measurement Range. Micromachines (Basel) 2023; 14:716. [PMID: 37420949 DOI: 10.3390/mi14040716] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2023] [Revised: 03/17/2023] [Accepted: 03/21/2023] [Indexed: 07/09/2023]
Abstract
Flexible piezoresistive sensors (FPSs) have the advantages of compact structure, convenient signal acquisition and fast dynamic response; they are widely used in motion detection, wearable electronic devices and electronic skins. FPSs accomplish the measurement of stresses through piezoresistive material (PM). However, FPSs based on a single PM cannot achieve high sensitivity and wide measurement range simultaneously. To solve this problem, a heterogeneous multi-material flexible piezoresistive sensor (HMFPS) with high sensitivity and a wide measurement range is proposed. The HMFPS consists of a graphene foam (GF), a PDMS layer and an interdigital electrode. Among them, the GF serves as a sensing layer, providing high sensitivity, and the PDMS serves as a supporting layer, providing a large measurement range. The influence and principle of the heterogeneous multi-material (HM) on the piezoresistivity were investigated by comparing the three HMFPS with different sizes. The HM proved to be an effective way to produce flexible sensors with high sensitivity and a wide measurement range. The HMFPS-10 has a sensitivity of 0.695 kPa-1, a measurement range of 0-14,122 kPa, fast response/recovery (83 ms and 166 ms) and excellent stability (2000 cycles). In addition, the potential application of the HMFPS-10 in human motion monitoring was demonstrated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tingting Yu
- School of Aerospace Science and Technology, Xidian University, Xi'an 710071, China
| | - Yebo Tao
- Intelligent Manufacturing College, Jiaxing Vocational & Technical College, Jiaxing 314036, China
| | - Yali Wu
- College of Mechanical and Vehicle Engineering, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, China
| | - Dongguang Zhang
- College of Mechanical and Vehicle Engineering, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, China
| | - Jiayi Yang
- College of Computer Science and Technology, Xi'an University of Science and Technology, Xi'an 710054, China
| | - Gang Ge
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117583, Singapore
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Neubauer J, Kim KJ. Multiphysics Modeling Framework for Soft PVC Gel Sensors with Experimental Comparisons. Polymers (Basel) 2023; 15:polym15040864. [PMID: 36850148 PMCID: PMC9966433 DOI: 10.3390/polym15040864] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2022] [Revised: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 02/05/2023] [Indexed: 02/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) gels have recently been found to exhibit mechanoelectrical transduction or sensing capabilities under compressive loading applications. This phenomenon is not wholly understood but has been characterized as an adsorption-like phenomena under varying amounts and types of plasticizers. A different polymer lattice structure has also been tested, thermoplastic polyurethane, which showed similar sensing characteristics. This study examines mechanical and electrical properties of these gel sensors and proposes a mathematical framework of the underlying mechanisms of mechanoelectrical transduction. COMSOL Multiphysics is used to show solid mechanics characteristics, electrostatic properties, and transport of interstitial plasticizer under compressive loading applications. The solid mechanics takes a continuum mechanics approach and includes a highly compressive Storakers material model for compressive loading applications. The electrostatics and transport properties include charge conservation and a Langmuir adsorption migration model with variable diffusion properties based on plasticizer properties. Results show both plasticizer concentration gradient as well as expected voltage response under varying amounts and types of plasticizers. Experimental work is also completed to show agreeance with the modeling results.
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Schneider MY, Harada H, Villez K, Maurer M. Several Small or Single Large? Quantifying the Catchment-Wide Performance of On-Site Wastewater Treatment Plants with Inaccurate Sensors. Environ Sci Technol 2023; 57:1114-1122. [PMID: 36594483 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.2c05945] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
On-site wastewater treatment plants (OSTs) often lack monitoring, resulting in unreliable treatment performance. They thus appear to be a stopgap solution despite their potential contribution to circular water management. Low-maintenance but inaccurate soft sensors are emerging that address this concern. However, how their inaccuracy impacts the catchment-wide treatment performance of a system of many OSTs has not been quantified. We develop a stochastic model to estimate catchment-wide OST performances with a Monte Carlo simulation. In our study, soft sensors with a 70% accuracy improved the treatment performance from 66% of the time functional to 98%. Soft sensors optimized for specificity, indicating the true negative rate, improve the system performance, while sensors optimized for sensitivity, indicating the true positive rate, quantify the treatment performance more accurately. This new insight leads us to suggest programming two soft sensors in practical settings with the same hardware sensor data as input: one soft sensor geared to high specificity for maintenance scheduling and one geared to high sensitivity for performance quantification. Our findings suggest that a maintenance strategy combining inaccurate sensors with appropriate alarm management can vastly improve the mean catchment-wide treatment performance of a system of OSTs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariane Yvonne Schneider
- Next Generation Artificial Intelligence Research Center & School of Information Science and Technology, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo113-8656, Japan
- Institute of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering, ETH Zürich, 8093Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Hidenori Harada
- Graduate School of Asian and African Area Studies, Kyoto University, Yoshida-Shimoadachi, Sakyo, Kyoto606-8501, Japan
| | - Kris Villez
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee37831, United States
| | - Max Maurer
- Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Eawag, 8600Dübendorf, Switzerland
- Institute of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering, ETH Zürich, 8093Zurich, Switzerland
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Zhang G, Li C, Tan J, Wang M, Liu Z, Ren Y, Xue Y, Zhang Q. Double Modification of Poly(urethane-urea): Toward Healable, Tear-Resistant, and Mechanically Robust Elastomers for Strain Sensors. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 2023; 15:2134-2146. [PMID: 36571454 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.2c18397] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Polyurethane elastomers with mechanical robustness, tear resistance, and healing efficiency hold great potential in wearable sensors and soft robots. However, achieving excellent mechanical properties and healable capability simultaneously remains highly desirable but exclusive. Herein, we propose a straightforward procedure for double modification of poly(urethane-urea) (PUU) via thiolactone chemistry, and two different dynamic cross-linking bonds (disulfide linkages and Zn2+/imidazole coordination) are successively incorporated into the side chain of PUU, producing double cross-linking elastomers (PUU-I/Zn-S). The synergy between disulfide linkages and Zn2+/imidazole coordination forms a robust and dynamic network, endowing PUU-I/Zn-S with excellent mechanical and healing properties. The tensile stress, elongation at break, and toughness of the resultant elastomer can reach 44.06 MPa, 1000%, and 181.93 MJ m-3, respectively. Meanwhile, PUU-I/Zn-S exhibits outstanding tearing resistance with a tearing energy of 42.1 kJ m-2. The PUU-I/Zn-S can restore its mechanical robustness after self-healing at room temperature (25 ± 2 °C) or 60 °C and even maintain 91% of its original tensile strength after reprocessing two times. Additionally, PUU-I/Zn-S-based strain sensors are fabricated by introducing conductive nanofillers and demonstrate remarkable sensing capability to diverse human body motions. This work demonstrates a simple and feasible method for the postfunctionalization and enhancement of polyurethane and provides some insights into reconciling the traditional contradictory properties of mechanical robustness and healing efficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guoxian Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Special Functional and Smart Polymer Materials of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710072, China
| | - Chunmei Li
- Key Laboratory of Special Functional and Smart Polymer Materials of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710072, China
| | - JiaoJun Tan
- Key Laboratory of Special Functional and Smart Polymer Materials of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710072, China
- College of Bioresources Chemical and Materials Engineering, National Demonstration Center for Experimental Light Chemistry Engineering Education, Shaanxi University of Science & Technology, Xi'an 710021, China
| | - Mingqi Wang
- Key Laboratory of Special Functional and Smart Polymer Materials of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710072, China
| | - Zongxu Liu
- Key Laboratory of Special Functional and Smart Polymer Materials of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710072, China
| | - Yafeng Ren
- Key Laboratory of Special Functional and Smart Polymer Materials of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710072, China
| | - Ying Xue
- Key Laboratory of Special Functional and Smart Polymer Materials of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710072, China
| | - Qiuyu Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Special Functional and Smart Polymer Materials of Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Northwestern Polytechnical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi 710072, China
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14
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Roels E, Terryn S, Ferrentino P, Brancart J, Van Assche G, Vanderborght B. An Interdisciplinary Tutorial: A Self-Healing Soft Finger with Embedded Sensor. Sensors (Basel) 2023; 23:811. [PMID: 36679614 PMCID: PMC9863682 DOI: 10.3390/s23020811] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2022] [Revised: 12/28/2022] [Accepted: 01/05/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
In the field of soft robotics, knowledge of material science is becoming more and more important. However, many researchers have a background in only one of both domains. To aid the understanding of the other domain, this tutorial describes the complete process from polymer synthesis over fabrication to testing of a soft finger. Enough background is provided during the tutorial such that researchers from both fields can understand and sharpen their knowledge. Self-healing polymers are used in this tutorial, showing that these polymers that were once a specialty, have become accessible for broader use. The use of self-healing polymers allows soft robots to recover from fatal damage, as shown in this tutorial, which increases their lifespan significantly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ellen Roels
- Brubotics and Imec, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
- Physical Chemistry and Polymer Science (FYSC), Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Seppe Terryn
- Brubotics and Imec, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
- Physical Chemistry and Polymer Science (FYSC), Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Pasquale Ferrentino
- Brubotics and Imec, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Joost Brancart
- Physical Chemistry and Polymer Science (FYSC), Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Guy Van Assche
- Physical Chemistry and Polymer Science (FYSC), Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Bram Vanderborght
- Brubotics and Imec, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
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15
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An J, Deed RC, Kilmartin PA, Yu W. Could Collected Chemical Parameters Be Utilized to Build Soft Sensors Capable of Predicting the Provenance, Vintages, and Price Points of New Zealand Pinot Noir Wines Simultaneously? Foods 2023; 12. [PMID: 36673415 DOI: 10.3390/foods12020323] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2022] [Revised: 12/26/2022] [Accepted: 12/29/2022] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Soft sensors work as predictive frameworks encapsulating a set of easy-to-collect input data and a machine learning method (ML) to predict highly related variables that are difficult to measure. The machine learning method could provide a prediction of complex unknown relations between the input data and desired output parameters. Recently, soft sensors have been applicable in predicting the prices and vintages of New Zealand Pinot noir wines based on chemical parameters. However, the previous sample size did not adequately represent the diversity of provenances, vintages, and price points across commercially available New Zealand Pinot noir wines. Consequently, a representative sample of 39 commercially available New Zealand Pinot noir wines from diverse provenances, vintages, and price points were selected. Literature has shown that wine phenolic compounds strongly correlated with wine provenances, vintages and price points, which could be used as input data for developing soft sensors. Due to the significance of these phenolic compounds, chemical parameters, including phenolic compounds and pH, were collected using UV-Vis visible spectrophotometry and a pH meter. The soft sensor utilising Naive Bayes (belongs to ML) was designed to predict Pinot noir wines' provenances (regions of origin) based on six chemical parameters with the prediction accuracy of over 75%. Soft sensors based on decision trees (within ML) could predict Pinot noir wines' vintages and price points with prediction accuracies of over 75% based on six chemical parameters. These predictions were based on the same collected six chemical parameters as aforementioned.
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16
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Bocu R, Bocu D, Iavich M. An Extended Review Concerning the Relevance of Deep Learning and Privacy Techniques for Data-Driven Soft Sensors. Sensors (Basel) 2022; 23:294. [PMID: 36616892 PMCID: PMC9824402 DOI: 10.3390/s23010294] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2022] [Revised: 12/19/2022] [Accepted: 12/20/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
The continuously increasing number of mobile devices actively being used in the world amounted to approximately 6.8 billion by 2022. Consequently, this implies a substantial increase in the amount of personal data collected, transported, processed, and stored. The authors of this paper designed and implemented an integrated personal health data management system, which considers data-driven software and hardware sensors, comprehensive data privacy techniques, and machine-learning-based algorithmic models. It was determined that there are very few relevant and complete surveys concerning this specific problem. Therefore, the current scientific research was considered, and this paper comprehensively analyzes the importance of deep learning techniques that are applied to the overall management of data collected by data-driven soft sensors. This survey considers aspects that are related to demographics, health and body parameters, and human activity and behaviour pattern detection. Additionally, the relatively complex problem of designing and implementing data privacy mechanisms, while ensuring efficient data access, is also discussed, and the relevant metrics are presented. The paper concludes by presenting the most important open research questions and challenges. The paper provides a comprehensive and thorough scientific literature survey, which is useful for any researcher or practitioner in the scope of data-driven soft sensors and privacy techniques, in relation to the relevant machine-learning-based models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Razvan Bocu
- Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Transilvania University of Brasov, 500036 Brașov, Romania
- Department of Research and Technology, Siemens Industry Software, 500203 Brașov, Romania
| | - Dorin Bocu
- Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, Transilvania University of Brasov, 500036 Brașov, Romania
| | - Maksim Iavich
- Department of Computer Science, Caucasus University, Tbilisi 0102, Georgia
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17
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Tolvanen J, Nelo M, Alasmäki H, Siponkoski T, Mäkelä P, Vahera T, Hannu J, Juuti J, Jantunen H. Ultraelastic and High-Conductivity Multiphase Conductor with Universally Autonomous Self-Healing. Adv Sci (Weinh) 2022; 9:e2205485. [PMID: 36351708 PMCID: PMC9798996 DOI: 10.1002/advs.202205485] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2022] [Revised: 10/17/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Next-generation, truly soft, and stretchable electronic circuits with material level self-healing functionality require high-performance solution-processable organic conductors capable of autonomously self-healing without external intervention. A persistent challenge is to achieve required performance level as electrical, mechanical, and self-healing properties optimized in tandem are difficult to attain. Here heterogenous multiphase conductor with cocontinuous morphology and macroscale phase separation for ultrafast universally autonomous self-healing with full recovery of pristine tensile and electrical properties in less than 120 and 900 s, respectively, is reported. The multiphase conductor is insensitive to flaws under stretching and achieves a synergistic combination of conductivity up to ≈1.5 S cm-1 , stress at break ≈4 MPa, toughness up to >81 MJ m-3 , and elastic recovery exceeding 2000% strain. Such properties are difficult to achieve simultaneously with any other type of material so far. The solution-processable multiphase conductor offers a paradigm shift for damage tolerant and environmentally resistant soft electronic components and circuits with material level self-healing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jarkko Tolvanen
- Microelectronics Research UnitFaculty of Information Technology and Electrical EngineeringUniversity of OuluP.O. Box 4500OuluFI‐90014Finland
| | - Mikko Nelo
- Microelectronics Research UnitFaculty of Information Technology and Electrical EngineeringUniversity of OuluP.O. Box 4500OuluFI‐90014Finland
| | - Heidi Alasmäki
- Microelectronics Research UnitFaculty of Information Technology and Electrical EngineeringUniversity of OuluP.O. Box 4500OuluFI‐90014Finland
| | - Tuomo Siponkoski
- Microelectronics Research UnitFaculty of Information Technology and Electrical EngineeringUniversity of OuluP.O. Box 4500OuluFI‐90014Finland
| | - Piia Mäkelä
- Research Unit of Medical ImagingPhysics and TechnologyFaculty of MedicineUniversity of OuluP.O. Box 5000OuluFI‐90014Finland
| | - Timo Vahera
- Microelectronics Research UnitFaculty of Information Technology and Electrical EngineeringUniversity of OuluP.O. Box 4500OuluFI‐90014Finland
| | - Jari Hannu
- Microelectronics Research UnitFaculty of Information Technology and Electrical EngineeringUniversity of OuluP.O. Box 4500OuluFI‐90014Finland
| | - Jari Juuti
- Microelectronics Research UnitFaculty of Information Technology and Electrical EngineeringUniversity of OuluP.O. Box 4500OuluFI‐90014Finland
| | - Heli Jantunen
- Microelectronics Research UnitFaculty of Information Technology and Electrical EngineeringUniversity of OuluP.O. Box 4500OuluFI‐90014Finland
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18
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Ibarra A, Darbois-Texier B, Melo F. Designing a Contact Fingertip Sensor Made Using a Soft 3D Printing Technique. Soft Robot 2022; 9:1210-1219. [PMID: 35230913 DOI: 10.1089/soro.2021.0128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
The development of highly compliant materials and actuators has enabled the design of soft robots that can be applied in rescue operations, in secure human-robot interactions, to manipulate fragile devices or objects, and for robot locomotion within complex environments. To develop reliable solutions for soft robotics applications, devices with the ability to deform and change shape are required, which must be equipped with appropriate sensors capable of withstanding large deformations at suitable speeds and respond repeatedly. This work presents a methodology to build strain sensors made of sensitive, thin, and conductive channels printed inside a soft matrix, using three-dimensional printing. As proof of concept, rectangular beams and semispherical caps embedded with sensitive circuits are developed that are designed to deform under applied forces and detect the gradual contact with objects. The rectangular beam with conductive lines separated from the neutral plane exhibits a quasi-linear electrical response as a function of the applied shear strain. Mechanical diodes, which trigger an activated response once a given deformation onset is exceeded, are implemented using circumferential conductive channels that are centered with the spherical body sensor. Sinusoidally shaped conductive channels located at a given distance from the spherical surface produce a monotonic electrical response, which detects deformations over a broad range. Linear sensors, with enhanced sensitivity to compression, are created if the sensitive conductive channels are oriented along the compression direction. Numerical calculations, used to guide the design of the sensor, show the capability of these sensors to measure simultaneous normal and tangential forces, making them suitable for applications involving fragile object manipulation and robot locomotion. An example of application of these sensors in the control of the forces applied by soft gripper lifting an object is given.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alejandro Ibarra
- Department of Physics and The Center for Soft Matter Research, SMAT-C, University of Santiago, Santiago, Chile
| | | | - Francisco Melo
- Department of Physics and The Center for Soft Matter Research, SMAT-C, University of Santiago, Santiago, Chile
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19
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Abstract
Embedded soft sensors can significantly impact the design and control of soft-bodied robots. Although there have been considerable advances in technology behind these novel sensing materials, their application in real-world tasks, especially in closed-loop control tasks, has been severely limited. This is mainly because of the challenge involved with modeling a nonlinear time-variant sensor embedded in a complex soft-bodied system. This article presents a learning-based approach for closed-loop force control with embedded soft sensors and recurrent neural networks (RNNs). We present learning protocols for training a class of RNNs called long short-term memory (LSTM) that allows us to develop accurate and robust state estimation models of these complex dynamical systems within a short period of time. Using this model, we develop a simple feedback force controller for a soft anthropomorphic finger even with significant drift and hysteresis in our feedback signal. Simulation and experimental studies are conducted to analyze the capabilities and generalizability of the control architecture. Experimentally, we are able to develop a closed-loop controller with a control frequency of 25 Hz and an average accuracy of 0.17 N. Our results indicate that current soft sensing technologies can already be used in real-world applications with the aid of machine learning techniques and an appropriate training methodology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas George Thuruthel
- The Bio-Inspired Robotics Lab, Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
- Address correspondence to: Thomas George Thuruthel, The Bio-Inspired Robotics Lab, Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Trumpington St, Cambridge CB2 1PZ, United Kingdom
| | - Paul Gardner
- The Bio-Inspired Robotics Lab, Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Fumiya Iida
- The Bio-Inspired Robotics Lab, Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
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20
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Lin WH, Zhu Z, Ravikumar V, Sharma V, Tolkacheva EG, McAlpine MC, Ogle BM. A Bionic Testbed for Cardiac Ablation Tools. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms232214444. [PMID: 36430922 PMCID: PMC9692733 DOI: 10.3390/ijms232214444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2022] [Revised: 11/03/2022] [Accepted: 11/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Bionic-engineered tissues have been proposed for testing the performance of cardiovascular medical devices and predicting clinical outcomes ex vivo. Progress has been made in the development of compliant electronics that are capable of monitoring treatment parameters and being coupled to engineered tissues; however, the scale of most engineered tissues is too small to accommodate the size of clinical-grade medical devices. Here, we show substantial progress toward bionic tissues for evaluating cardiac ablation tools by generating a centimeter-scale human cardiac disk and coupling it to a hydrogel-based soft-pressure sensor. The cardiac tissue with contiguous electromechanical function was made possible by our recently established method to 3D bioprint human pluripotent stem cells in an extracellular matrix-based bioink that allows for in situ cell expansion prior to cardiac differentiation. The pressure sensor described here utilized electrical impedance tomography to enable the real-time spatiotemporal mapping of pressure distribution. A cryoablation tip catheter was applied to the composite bionic tissues with varied pressure. We found a close correlation between the cell response to ablation and the applied pressure. Under some conditions, cardiomyocytes could survive in the ablated region with more rounded morphology compared to the unablated controls, and connectivity was disrupted. This is the first known functional characterization of living human cardiomyocytes following an ablation procedure that suggests several mechanisms by which arrhythmia might redevelop following an ablation. Thus, bionic-engineered testbeds of this type can be indicators of tissue health and function and provide unique insight into human cell responses to ablative interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei-Han Lin
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
- Stem Cell Institute, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Zhijie Zhu
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Vasanth Ravikumar
- Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Vinod Sharma
- Cardiac Rhythm and Heart Failure Division, Medtronic Inc., Minneapolis, MN 55432, USA
| | - Elena G. Tolkacheva
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
- Lillehei Heart Institute, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
- Institute for Engineering in Medicine, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Michael C. McAlpine
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
- Institute for Engineering in Medicine, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
- Correspondence: (M.C.M.); (B.M.O.)
| | - Brenda M. Ogle
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
- Stem Cell Institute, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
- Lillehei Heart Institute, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
- Institute for Engineering in Medicine, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
- Masonic Cancer Center, University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
- Correspondence: (M.C.M.); (B.M.O.)
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21
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Severino AGV, de Lima JMM, de Araújo FMU. Industrial Soft Sensor Optimized by Improved PSO: A Deep Representation-Learning Approach. Sensors (Basel) 2022; 22:s22186887. [PMID: 36146235 PMCID: PMC9505118 DOI: 10.3390/s22186887] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2022] [Revised: 08/14/2022] [Accepted: 08/16/2022] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Soft sensors based on deep learning approaches are growing in popularity due to their ability to extract high-level features from training, improving soft sensors' performance. In the training process of such a deep model, the set of hyperparameters is critical to archive generalization and reliability. However, choosing the training hyperparameters is a complex task. Usually, a random approach defines the set of hyperparameters, which may not be adequate regarding the high number of sets and the soft sensing purposes. This work proposes the RB-PSOSAE, a Representation-Based Particle Swarm Optimization with a modified evaluation function to optimize the hyperparameter set of a Stacked AutoEncoder-based soft sensor. The evaluation function considers the mean square error (MSE) of validation and the representation of the features extracted through mutual information (MI) analysis in the pre-training step. By doing this, the RB-PSOSAE computes hyperparameters capable of supporting the training process to generate models with improved generalization and relevant hidden features. As a result, the proposed method can generate more than 16.4% improvement in RMSE compared to another standard PSO-based method and, in some cases, more than 50% improvement compared to traditional methods applied to the same real-world nonlinear industrial process. Thus, the results demonstrate better prediction performance than traditional and state-of-the-art methods.
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22
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Minzu V, Ifrim G, Arama I. Control of Microalgae Growth in Artificially Lighted Photobioreactors Using Metaheuristic-Based Predictions. Sensors (Basel) 2021; 21:8065. [PMID: 34884070 DOI: 10.3390/s21238065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2021] [Revised: 11/28/2021] [Accepted: 11/29/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
A metaheuristic algorithm can be a realistic solution when optimal control problems require a significant computational effort. The problem stated in this work concerns the optimal control of microalgae growth in an artificially lighted photobioreactor working in batch mode. The process and the dynamic model are very well known and have been validated in previous papers. The control solution is a closed-loop structure whose controller generates predicted control sequences. An efficient way to make optimal predictions is to use a metaheuristic algorithm, the particle swarm optimization algorithm. Even if this metaheuristic is efficient in treating predictions with a very large prediction horizon, the main objective of this paper is to find a tool to reduce the controller’s computational complexity. We propose a soft sensor that gives information used to reduce the interval where the control input’s values are placed in each sampling period. The sensor is based on measurement of the biomass concentration and numerical integration of the process model. The returned information concerns the specific growth rate of microalgae and the biomass yield on light energy. Algorithms, which can be used in real-time implementation, are proposed for all modules involved in the simulation series. Details concerning the implementation of the closed loop, controller, and soft sensor are presented. The simulation results prove that the soft sensor leads to a significant decrease in computational complexity.
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Hapipi NM, Mazlan SA, Ubaidillah U, Abdul Aziz SA, Choi SB, Nordin NA, Nazmi N, Pang Z, Mohd Yusuf S. Dual Properties of Polyvinyl Alcohol-Based Magnetorheological Plastomer with Different Ratio of DMSO/Water. Sensors (Basel) 2021; 21:7758. [PMID: 34833835 DOI: 10.3390/s21227758] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2021] [Revised: 11/12/2021] [Accepted: 11/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)-based magnetorheological plastomer (MRP) possesses excellent magnetically dependent mechanical properties such as the magnetorheological effect (MR effect) when exposed to an external magnetic field. PVA-based MRP also shows a shear stiffening (ST) effect, which is very beneficial in fabricating pressure sensor. Thus, it can automatically respond to external stimuli such as shear force without the magnetic field. The dual properties of PVA-based MRP mainly on the ST and MR effect are rarely reported. Therefore, this work empirically investigates the dual properties of this smart material under the influence of different solvent compositions (20:80, 40:60, 60:40, and 80:20) by varying the ratios of binary solvent mixture (dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) to water). Upon applying a shear stress with excitation frequencies from 0.01 to 10 Hz, the storage modulus (G′) for PVA-based MRP with DMSO to water ratio of 20:40 increases from 6.62 × 10−5 to 0.035 MPa. This result demonstrates an excellent ST effect with the relative shear stiffening effect (RSTE) up to 52,827%. In addition, both the ST and MR effect show a downward trend with increasing DMSO content to water. Notably, the physical state of hydrogel MRP could be changed with different solvent ratios either in the liquid-like or solid-like state. On the other hand, a transient stepwise experiment showed that the solvent’s composition had a positive effect on the arrangement of CIPs within the matrix as a function of the external magnetic field. Therefore, the solvent ratio (DMSO/water) can influence both ST and MR effects of hydrogel MRP, which need to be emphasized in the fabrication of hydrogel MRP for appropriate applications primarily with soft sensors and actuators for dynamic motion control.
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24
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Hoang TT, Sy L, Bussu M, Thai MT, Low H, Phan PT, Davies J, Nguyen CC, Lovell NH, Do TN. A Wearable Soft Fabric Sleeve for Upper Limb Augmentation. Sensors (Basel) 2021; 21:7638. [PMID: 34833719 DOI: 10.3390/s21227638] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2021] [Revised: 11/02/2021] [Accepted: 11/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Soft actuators (SAs) have been used in many compliant robotic structure and wearable devices, due to their safe interaction with the wearers. Despite advances, the capability of current SAs is limited by scalability, high hysteresis, and slow responses. In this paper, a new class of soft, scalable, and high-aspect ratio fiber-reinforced hydraulic SAs is introduced. The new SA uses a simple fabrication process of insertion where a hollow elastic rubber tube is directly inserted into a constrained hollow coil, eliminating the need for the manual wrapping of an inextensible fiber around a long elastic structure. To provide high adaptation to the user skin for wearable applications, the new SAs are integrated into flexible fabrics to form a wearable fabric sleeve. To monitor the SA elongation, a soft liquid metal-based fabric piezoresistive sensor is also developed. To capture the nonlinear hysteresis of the SA, a novel asymmetric hysteresis model which only requires five model parameters in its structure is developed and experimentally validated. The new SAs-driven wearable robotic sleeve is scalable, highly flexible, and lightweight. It can also produce a large amount of force of around 23 N per muscle at around 30% elongation, to provide useful assistance to the human upper limbs. Experimental results show that the soft fabric sleeve can augment a user’s performance when working against a load, evidenced by a significant reduction on the muscular effort, as monitored by electromyogram (EMG) signals. The performance of the developed SAs, soft fabric sleeve, soft liquid metal fabric sensor, and nonlinear hysteresis model reveal that they can effectively modulate the level of assistance for the wearer. The new technologies obtained from this work can be potentially implemented in emerging assistive applications, such as rehabilitation, defense, and industry.
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Abstract
This work reports on a soft gripper with three-dimensional (3D) printed soft monolithic fingers that seamlessly incorporate pneumatic touch sensing chambers (pTSCs) for real-time pressure/force control to grasp objects with varying stiffness (i.e., soft, compliant, and rigid objects). The fingers of the soft gripper were 3D printed simultaneously along with the pTSC, without requiring support materials, using an inexpensive fused deposition modeling 3D printer. The pTSCs embedded in the fingers have numerous advantages, including fast response, repeatability, reliability, negligible hysteresis, stability over time, durability, and very low power consumption. Finite element modeling is used to predict the behavior of the pTSCs under different body contacts and to design their topology. Real-time pressure/force control was performed experimentally based on the feedback data provided by the pTSCs to grasp various objects with different weights, shapes, sizes, textures, and stiffnesses using an experimentally tuned proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller with the same gains for all the objects grasped. In other words, the gripper can self-adapt to different environments with different stiffnesses and provide stable contact and grasping. These results are validated theoretically by modeling the soft gripper in contact with the objects with varying stiffness to show that the stability of the contact motion is not affected by the stiffness of the environment (i.e., the grasped object) when constant PID control gains are used.
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Affiliation(s)
- Charbel Tawk
- School of Mechanical, Materials, Mechatronic and Biomedical Engineering, Applied Mechatronics and Biomedical Engineering Research (AMBER) Group, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, Australia.,ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science, University of Wollongong Innovation Campus, North Wollongong, Australia.,Faculty of Engineering and Information Sciences, University of Wollongong in Dubai, Dubai Knowledge Park, Dubai, UAE
| | - Emre Sariyildiz
- School of Mechanical, Materials, Mechatronic and Biomedical Engineering, Applied Mechatronics and Biomedical Engineering Research (AMBER) Group, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, Australia
| | - Gursel Alici
- School of Mechanical, Materials, Mechatronic and Biomedical Engineering, Applied Mechatronics and Biomedical Engineering Research (AMBER) Group, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, Australia.,ARC Centre of Excellence for Electromaterials Science, University of Wollongong Innovation Campus, North Wollongong, Australia
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26
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Abstract
Artificial tactile sensing for robots is a counterpart to the human sense of touch, serving as a feedback interface for sensing and interacting with the environment. A vision-based tactile sensor has emerged as a novel and advantageous branch of artificial tactile sensors. Compared with conventional tactile sensors, vision-based tactile sensors possess stronger potential thanks to acquiring multimodal contact information in much higher spatial resolution, although they typically suffer from bulky size and fabrication challenges. In this article, we report a thin vision-based tactile sensor that draws inspiration from natural compound eye structures and demonstrate its capability of sensing three-dimensional (3D) force. The sensor is composed of an array of vision units, an elastic touching interface, and a supporting structure with illumination. Experiments validated the sensor's advantages, including competitive spatial resolution of deformation as high as 1016 dpi on a 5 × 8 mm2 sensing area, superior accuracy of 3D force measurement at levels of 0.018 N for tangential force and 0.213 N (0.108 N at the center region) for normal force, and real-time processing at 30 Hz, while achieving a thin size of 5 mm. We further demonstrate the sensor capability in sensing 3D force and slip occurrence in real grasping experiments. This device paves the way for robotic applications that require rich tactile information with miniaturized sensor structure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yazhan Zhang
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, Hong Kong
| | - Xia Chen
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, Hong Kong
| | - Michael Yu Wang
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, Hong Kong.,Department of Electronic and Computer Engineering, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, Hong Kong
| | - Hongyu Yu
- Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering and Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, Hong Kong
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27
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Han Y, Varadarajan A, Kim T, Zheng G, Kitani K, Kelliher A, Rikakis T, Park YL. Smart Skin: Vision-Based Soft Pressure Sensing System for In-Home Hand Rehabilitation. Soft Robot 2021; 9:473-485. [PMID: 34415805 PMCID: PMC9232239 DOI: 10.1089/soro.2020.0083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
We introduce a novel in-home hand rehabilitation system for monitoring hand motions and assessing grip forces of stroke patients. The overall system is composed of a sensing device and a computer vision system. The sensing device is a lightweight cylindrical object for easy grip and manipulation, which is covered by a passive sensing layer called "Smart Skin." The Smart Skin is fabricated using soft silicone elastomer, which contains embedded microchannels partially filled with colored fluid. When the Smart Skin is compressed by grip forces, the colored fluid rises and fills in the top surface display area. Then, the computer vision system captures the image of the display area through a red-green-blue camera, detects the length change of the liquid through image processing, and eventually maps the liquid length to the calibrated force for estimating the gripping force. The passive sensing mechanism of the proposed Smart Skin device works in conjunction with a single camera setup, making the system simple and easy to use, while also requiring minimum maintenance effort. Our system, on one hand, aims to support home-based rehabilitation therapy with minimal or no supervision by recording the training process and the force data, which can be automatically conveyed to physical therapists. In contrast, the therapists can also remotely instruct the patients with their training prescriptions through online videos. This study first describes the design, fabrication, and calibration of the Smart Skin, and the algorithm for image processing, and then presents experimental results from the integrated system. The Smart Skin prototype shows a relatively linear relationship between the applied force and the length change of the liquid in the range of 0-35 N. The computer vision system shows the estimation error <4% and a relatively high stability in estimation under different hand motions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuanfeng Han
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
| | - Aadith Varadarajan
- Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Taekyoung Kim
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Institute of Advanced Machines and Design, Institute of Engineering Research, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Gang Zheng
- Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Kris Kitani
- Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Aisling Kelliher
- Department of Computer Science, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA
| | - Thanassis Rikakis
- Department of Bioengineering, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA
| | - Yong-Lae Park
- Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.,Department of Mechanical Engineering, Institute of Advanced Machines and Design, Institute of Engineering Research, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
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28
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Schwab F, Lunsford ET, Hong T, Wiesemüller F, Kovac M, Park YL, Akanyeti O, Liao JC, Jusufi A. Body Caudal Undulation measured by Soft Sensors and emulated by Soft Artificial Muscles. Integr Comp Biol 2021; 61:1955-1965. [PMID: 34415009 PMCID: PMC8699111 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icab182] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2021] [Revised: 08/15/2021] [Accepted: 08/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
We propose the use of bio-inspired robotics equipped with soft sensor technologies to gain a better understanding of the mechanics and control of animal movement. Soft robotic systems can be used to generate new hypotheses and uncover fundamental principles underlying animal locomotion and sensory capabilities, which could subsequently be validated using living organisms. Physical models increasingly include lateral body movements, notably back and tail bending, which are necessary for horizontal plane undulation in model systems ranging from fish to amphibians and reptiles. We present a comparative study of the use of physical modeling in conjunction with soft robotics and integrated soft and hyperelastic sensors to monitor local pressures, enabling local feedback control, and discuss issues related to understanding the mechanics and control of undulatory locomotion. A parallel approach combining live animal data with biorobotic physical modeling promises to be beneficial for gaining a better understanding of systems in motion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabian Schwab
- Locomotion in Biorobotic and Somatic Systems Group, Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems, Heisenbergstraße 3, 70569, Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Elias T Lunsford
- Department of Biology, Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience, University of Florida, Saint Augustine, Florida, 32080, U.S.A
| | - Taehwa Hong
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Korea
| | - Fabian Wiesemüller
- Materials and Technology Center of Robotics, EMPA, Überlandstrasse 129, Zürich, 8600, Switzerland.,Aerial Robotics Lab (ARL), Department of Aeronautics, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
| | - Mirko Kovac
- Materials and Technology Center of Robotics, EMPA, Überlandstrasse 129, Zürich, 8600, Switzerland.,Aerial Robotics Lab (ARL), Department of Aeronautics, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
| | - Yong-Lae Park
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Korea
| | - Otar Akanyeti
- Department of Biology, Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience, University of Florida, Saint Augustine, Florida, 32080, U.S.A.,Department of Computer Science, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, SY23 3FL, UK
| | - James C Liao
- Department of Biology, Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience, University of Florida, Saint Augustine, Florida, 32080, U.S.A
| | - Ardian Jusufi
- Locomotion in Biorobotic and Somatic Systems Group, Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems, Heisenbergstraße 3, 70569, Stuttgart, Germany
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29
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De Tommasi F, Lo Presti D, Virgili F, Massaroni C, Schena E, Carassiti M. Soft System Based on Fiber Bragg Grating Sensor for Loss of Resistance Detection during Epidural Procedures: In Silico and In Vivo Assessment. Sensors (Basel) 2021; 21:5329. [PMID: 34450771 DOI: 10.3390/s21165329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2021] [Revised: 08/04/2021] [Accepted: 08/05/2021] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Epidural analgesia represents a clinical common practice aiming at pain mitigation. This loco-regional technique is widely used in several applications such as labor, surgery and lower back pain. It involves the injections of anesthetics or analgesics into the epidural space (ES). The ES detection is still demanding and is usually performed by the techniques named loss of resistance (LOR). In this study, we propose a novel soft system (SS) based on one fiber Bragg grating sensor (FBG) embedded in a soft polymeric matrix for LOR detection during the epidural puncture. The SS was designed to allow instrumenting the syringe's plunger without relevant modifications of the anesthetist's sensations during the procedure. After the metrological characterization of the SS, we assessed the capability of this solution in detecting LOR by carrying it out in silico and in clinical settings. For both trials, results revealed the capability of the proposed solutions in detecting the LOR and then in recording the force exerted on the plunger.
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30
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Abstract
Soft tactile sensors are an attractive solution when robotic systems must interact with delicate objects in unstructured and obscured environments, such as most medical robotics applications. The soft nature of such a system increases both comfort and safety, while the addition of simultaneous soft active actuation provides additional features and can also improve the sensing range. This paper presents the development of a compact soft tactile sensor which is able to measure the profile of objects and, through an integrated pneumatic system, actuate and change the effective stiffness of its tactile contact surface. We report experimental results which demonstrate the sensor's ability to detect lumps on the surface of objects or embedded within a silicone matrix. These results show the potential of this approach as a versatile method of tactile sensing with potential application in medical diagnosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan Bewley
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
| | - George P. Jenkinson
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
- Bristol Robotics Laboratory, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
| | - Antonia Tzemanaki
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
- Bristol Robotics Laboratory, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
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31
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Stottlemire BJ, Miller JD, Whitlow J, Huayamares SG, Dhar P, He M, Berkland CJ. Remote Sensing and Remote Actuation via Silicone-Magnetic Nanorod Composites. Adv Mater Technol 2021; 6:2001099. [PMID: 36304209 PMCID: PMC9603773 DOI: 10.1002/admt.202001099] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2020] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
The capacity for a soft material to combine remote sensing and remote actuation is highly desirable for many applications in soft robotics and wearable technologies. This work presents a silicone elastomer with a suspension of a small weight fraction of ferromagnetic nickel nanorods, which is capable of both sensing deformation and altering stiffness in the presence of an external magnetic field. Cylinders composed of silicone elastomer and 1% by weight nickel nanorods experience large increases in compressive modulus when exposed to an external magnetic field. Incremental compressions totaling 600 g of force applied to the same silicone-nanorod composites increase the magnetic field strength measured by a Hall effect sensor enabling the material to be used as a soft load cell capable of detecting the rate, duration, and magnitude of force applied. In addition, lattice structures are 3D printed using an ink composed of silicone elastomer and 1% by weight nickel nanorods, which possess the same sensing capacity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bryce J Stottlemire
- Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, University of Kansas, 1530 West 15th Street, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA
| | - Jonathan D Miller
- Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, University of Kansas, 1530 West 15th Street, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA; Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, University of Kansas, 2095 Constant Avenue, Lawrence, KS 66047, USA
| | - Jonathan Whitlow
- Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, University of Kansas, 1530 West 15th Street, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA
| | - Sebastian G Huayamares
- Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, University of Kansas, 1530 West 15th Street, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA
| | - Prajnaparamita Dhar
- Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, University of Kansas, 1530 West 15th Street, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA
| | - Mei He
- Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, University of Kansas, 1530 West 15th Street, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA
| | - Cory J Berkland
- Department of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, University of Kansas, 1530 West 15th Street, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA; Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry University of Kansas 2095 Constant Avenue, Lawrence, KS 66047, USA
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32
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Abstract
Marine animals, such as leptocephalus and jellyfish, can sense external stimuli and achieve optical camouflage in the aquatic environment. Fabricating an intelligent soft sensor that can mimic the capabilities of transparent marine animals and function underwater can enable transformative applications in various novel fields. However, previously reported soft sensors struggle to meet the requirements of adhesion, self-healing ability, optical transparency, and stable conductivity in the aquatic environment. Herein, high-performance ionogels by virtue of ion-dipole and ion-ion interactions between fluorine-rich poly(ionic liquid) and ionic liquid are designed. The hydrophobic dynamic viscoelastic networks provide excellent properties for ionogels, including optical transparency, adjustable mechanical properties, underwater self-healing ability, underwater adhesiveness, conductivity, and 3D printability. A mechanically compliant and visually invisible underwater soft sensor based on ionogel is developed. This sensor can achieve optical camouflage, human-body-motion detection, and barrier-free communication in the aquatic environment. A novel contactless sensing mechanism based on changing the electron transfer pathway is proposed. Several interesting functions, such as detection of water environment changes, recognition of objects, delivery of information, and even identification of human standing posture can be realized. Importantly, the ionogel sensor can avoid fatigue and physical damage in the sensing process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhenchuan Yu
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Department of Macromolecular Science and Laboratory of Advanced Materials, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200433, P. R. China
| | - Peiyi Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Department of Macromolecular Science and Laboratory of Advanced Materials, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200433, P. R. China
- State Key Laboratory for Modification of Chemical Fibers and Polymer Materials, College of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Center for Advanced Low-Dimension Materials, Donghua University, Shanghai, 201620, P. R. China
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33
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Senthil Kumar K, Xu Z, Sivaperuman Kalairaj M, Ponraj G, Huang H, Ng CF, Wu QH, Ren H. Stretchable Capacitive Pressure Sensing Sleeve Deployable onto Catheter Balloons towards Continuous Intra-Abdominal Pressure Monitoring. Biosensors (Basel) 2021; 11:156. [PMID: 34069108 DOI: 10.3390/bios11050156] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2021] [Revised: 05/10/2021] [Accepted: 05/11/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Intra-abdominal pressure (IAP) is closely correlated with intra-abdominal hypertension (IAH) and abdominal compartment syndrome (ACS) diagnoses, indicating the need for continuous monitoring. Early intervention for IAH and ACS has been proven to reduce the rate of morbidity. However, the current IAP monitoring method is a tedious process with a long calibration time for a single time point measurement. Thus, there is the need for an efficient and continuous way of measuring IAP. Herein, a stretchable capacitive pressure sensor with controlled microstructures embedded into a cylindrical elastomeric mold, fabricated as a pressure sensing sleeve, is presented. The sensing sleeve can be readily deployed onto intrabody catheter balloons for pressure measurement at the site. The thin and highly conformable nature of the pressure sensing sleeve captures the pressure change without hindering the functionality of the foley catheter balloon.
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34
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Moreira de Lima JM, Ugulino de Araújo FM. Industrial Semi-Supervised Dynamic Soft-Sensor Modeling Approach Based on Deep Relevant Representation Learning. Sensors (Basel) 2021; 21:s21103430. [PMID: 34069123 PMCID: PMC8156853 DOI: 10.3390/s21103430] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2021] [Revised: 03/30/2021] [Accepted: 04/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Soft sensors based on deep learning have been growing in industrial process applications, inferring hard-to-measure but crucial quality-related variables. However, applications may present strong non-linearity, dynamicity, and a lack of labeled data. To deal with the above-cited problems, the extraction of relevant features is becoming a field of interest in soft-sensing. A novel deep representative learning soft-sensor modeling approach is proposed based on stacked autoencoder (SAE), mutual information (MI), and long-short term memory (LSTM). SAE is trained layer by layer with MI evaluation performed between extracted features and targeted output to evaluate the relevance of learned representation in each layer. This approach highlights relevant information and eliminates irrelevant information from the current layer. Thus, deep output-related representative features are retrieved. In the supervised fine-tuning stage, an LSTM is coupled to the tail of the SAE to address system inherent dynamic behavior. Also, a k-fold cross-validation ensemble strategy is applied to enhance the soft-sensor reliability. Two real-world industrial non-linear processes are employed to evaluate the proposed method performance. The obtained results show improved prediction performance in comparison to other traditional and state-of-art methods. Compared to the other methods, the proposed model can generate more than 38.6% and 39.4% improvement of RMSE for the two analyzed industrial cases.
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35
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Gu G, Shea H, Seelecke S, Alici G, Rizzello G. Editorial: Soft Robotics Based on Electroactive Polymers. Front Robot AI 2021; 8:676406. [PMID: 33996932 PMCID: PMC8120288 DOI: 10.3389/frobt.2021.676406] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2021] [Accepted: 04/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Guoying Gu
- Robotics Institute, School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.,State Key Laboratory of Mechanical System and Vibration, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Herbert Shea
- Soft Transducers Laboratory (LMTS), School of Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Neuchâtel, Switzerland
| | - Stefan Seelecke
- Department of Systems Engineering, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Saarland University, Saarbrucken, Germany
| | - Gursel Alici
- School of Mechanical, Materials, Mechatronic and Biomedical Engineering, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia.,Applied Mechatronics and Biomedical Engineering Research (AMBER) Group, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia
| | - Gianluca Rizzello
- Department of Systems Engineering, Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Saarland University, Saarbrucken, Germany
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36
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Ren Z, Zarepoor M, Huang X, Sabelhaus AP, Majidi C. Shape Memory Alloy (SMA) Actuator With Embedded Liquid Metal Curvature Sensor for Closed-Loop Control. Front Robot AI 2021; 8:599650. [PMID: 33898528 PMCID: PMC8059551 DOI: 10.3389/frobt.2021.599650] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2020] [Accepted: 01/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
We introduce a soft robot actuator composed of a pre-stressed elastomer film embedded with shape memory alloy (SMA) and a liquid metal (LM) curvature sensor. SMA-based actuators are commonly used as electrically-powered limbs to enable walking, crawling, and swimming of soft robots. However, they are susceptible to overheating and long-term degradation if they are electrically stimulated before they have time to mechanically recover from their previous activation cycle. Here, we address this by embedding the soft actuator with a capacitive LM sensor capable of measuring bending curvature. The soft sensor is thin and elastic and can track curvature changes without significantly altering the natural mechanical properties of the soft actuator. We show that the sensor can be incorporated into a closed-loop "bang-bang" controller to ensure that the actuator fully relaxes to its natural curvature before the next activation cycle. In this way, the activation frequency of the actuator can be dynamically adapted for continuous, cyclic actuation. Moreover, in the special case of slower, low power actuation, we can use the embedded curvature sensor as feedback for achieving partial actuation and limiting the amount of curvature change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhijian Ren
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Masoud Zarepoor
- School of Engineering and Technology, Lake Superior State University, Sault Ste Marie, MI, United States
| | - Xiaonan Huang
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Andrew P Sabelhaus
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Carmel Majidi
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, United States.,Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
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37
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Langlois K, Roels E, Van De Velde G, Espadinha C, Van Vlerken C, Verstraten T, Vanderborght B, Lefeber D. Integration of 3D Printed Flexible Pressure Sensors into Physical Interfaces for Wearable Robots. Sensors (Basel) 2021; 21:2157. [PMID: 33808626 DOI: 10.3390/s21062157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2021] [Revised: 02/28/2021] [Accepted: 03/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Sensing pressure at the physical interface between the robot and the human has important implications for wearable robots. On the one hand, monitoring pressure distribution can give valuable benefits on the aspects of comfortability and safety of such devices. Additionally, on the other hand, they can be used as a rich sensory input to high level interaction controllers. However, a problem is that the commercial availability of this technology is mostly limited to either low-cost solutions with poor performance or expensive options, limiting the possibilities for iterative designs. As an alternative, in this manuscript we present a three-dimensional (3D) printed flexible capacitive pressure sensor that allows seamless integration for wearable robotic applications. The sensors are manufactured using additive manufacturing techniques, which provides benefits in terms of versatility of design and implementation. In this study, a characterization of the 3D printed sensors in a test-bench is presented after which the sensors are integrated in an upper arm interface. A human-in-the-loop calibration of the sensors is then shown, allowing to estimate the external force and pressure distribution that is acting on the upper arm of seven human subjects while performing a dynamic task. The validation of the method is achieved by means of a collaborative robot for precise force interaction measurements. The results indicate that the proposed sensors are a potential solution for further implementation in human–robot interfaces.
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38
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Curreri F, Patanè L, Xibilia MG. RNN- and LSTM-Based Soft Sensors Transferability for an Industrial Process. Sensors (Basel) 2021; 21:s21030823. [PMID: 33530476 PMCID: PMC7865368 DOI: 10.3390/s21030823] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2020] [Revised: 01/21/2021] [Accepted: 01/22/2021] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
The design and application of Soft Sensors (SSs) in the process industry is a growing research field, which needs to mediate problems of model accuracy with data availability and computational complexity. Black-box machine learning (ML) methods are often used as an efficient tool to implement SSs. Many efforts are, however, required to properly select input variables, model class, model order and the needed hyperparameters. The aim of this work was to investigate the possibility to transfer the knowledge acquired in the design of a SS for a given process to a similar one. This has been approached as a transfer learning problem from a source to a target domain. The implementation of a transfer learning procedure allows to considerably reduce the computational time dedicated to the SS design procedure, leaving out many of the required phases. Two transfer learning methods have been proposed, evaluating their suitability to design SSs based on nonlinear dynamical models. Recurrent neural structures have been used to implement the SSs. In detail, recurrent neural networks and long short-term memory architectures have been compared in regard to their transferability. An industrial case of study has been considered, to evaluate the performance of the proposed procedures and the best compromise between SS performance and computational effort in transferring the model. The problem of labeled data scarcity in the target domain has been also discussed. The obtained results demonstrate the suitability of the proposed transfer learning methods in the design of nonlinear dynamical models for industrial systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesco Curreri
- Department of Mathematics and Computer Science, University of Palermo, 90123 Palermo, Italy;
| | - Luca Patanè
- Department of Engineering, University of Messina, 98166 Messina, Italy;
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39
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Sweeney M, Kabouris J. Modeling, instrumentation, automation, and optimization of water resource recovery facilities (2019) DIRECT. Water Environ Res 2020; 92:1499-1503. [PMID: 32639061 DOI: 10.1002/wer.1394] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2020] [Accepted: 06/24/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
A review of the literature published in 2019 on topics relating to water resource recovery facilities (WRRFs) in the areas of modeling, automation, measurement and sensors, and optimization of wastewater treatment (or water resource reclamation) is presented.
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40
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Gholami M, Napier C, Patiño AG, Cuthbert TJ, Menon C. Fatigue Monitoring in Running Using Flexible Textile Wearable Sensors. Sensors (Basel) 2020; 20:E5573. [PMID: 33003316 DOI: 10.3390/s20195573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2020] [Revised: 09/22/2020] [Accepted: 09/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Fatigue is a multifunctional and complex phenomenon that affects how individuals perform an activity. Fatigue during running causes changes in normal gait parameters and increases the risk of injury. To address this problem, wearable sensors have been proposed as an unobtrusive and portable system to measure changes in human movement as a result of fatigue. Recently, a category of wearable devices that has gained attention is flexible textile strain sensors because of their ability to be woven into garments to measure kinematics. This study uses flexible textile strain sensors to continuously monitor the kinematics during running and uses a machine learning approach to estimate the level of fatigue during running. Five female participants used the sensor-instrumented garment while running to a state of fatigue. In addition to the kinematic data from the flexible textile strain sensors, the perceived level of exertion was monitored for each participant as an indication of their actual fatigue level. A stacked random forest machine learning model was used to estimate the perceived exertion levels from the kinematic data. The machine learning algorithm obtained a root mean squared value of 0.06 and a coefficient of determination of 0.96 in participant-specific scenarios. This study highlights the potential of flexible textile strain sensors to objectively estimate the level of fatigue during running by detecting slight perturbations in lower extremity kinematics. Future iterations of this technology may lead to real-time biofeedback applications that could reduce the risk of running-related overuse injuries.
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Bannych A, Katz S, Barkay Z, Lachman N. Preserving Softness and Elastic Recovery in Silicone-Based Stretchable Electrodes Using Carbon Nanotubes. Polymers (Basel) 2020; 12:E1345. [PMID: 32545911 DOI: 10.3390/polym12061345] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2020] [Revised: 06/04/2020] [Accepted: 06/05/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Soft electronics based on various rubbers have lately been needed in many advanced applications such as soft robotics, wearable electronics, and remote health monitoring. The ability of a self-sensing material to be monitored in use provides a significant advantage. However, conductive fillers usually used to increase conductivity also change mechanical properties. Most importantly, the initial sought-after properties of rubber, namely softness and long elastic deformation, are usually compromised. This work presents full mechanical and electro-mechanical characterization, together with self-sensing abilities of a vinyl methyl silicone rubber (VMQ) and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) composite, featuring conductivity while maintaining low hardness. The research demonstrates that MWCNT/VMQ with just 4 wt.% of MWCNT are as conductive as commercial conductive VMQ based on Carbon Black, while exhibiting lower hardness and higher elastic recovery (~20% plastic deformation, similar to pure rubber). The research also demonstrates piezo-resistivity and Raman-sensitivity, allowing for self-sensing. Using morphological data, proposed mechanisms for the superior electrical and mechanical behavior, as well as the in-situ fingerprint for the composite conditions are presented. This research novelty is in the full MWCNT/VMQ mechanical and electro-mechanical characterization, thus demonstrating its ability to serve as a sensor over large local strains, multiple straining cycles, and environmental damage.
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Ma Y, Liu S, Xue G, Gong D. Soft Sensor with Deep Learning for Functional Region Detection in Urban Environments. Sensors (Basel) 2020; 20:E3348. [PMID: 32545653 DOI: 10.3390/s20123348] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2020] [Revised: 06/05/2020] [Accepted: 06/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
The rapid development of urbanization has increased traffic pressure and made the identification of urban functional regions a popular research topic. Some studies have used point of interest (POI) data and smart card data (SCD) to conduct subway station classifications; however, the unity of both the model and the dataset limits the prediction results. This paper not only uses SCD and POI data, but also adds Online to Offline (OTO) e-commerce platform data, an application that provides customers with information about different businesses, like the location, the score, the comments, and so on. In this paper, these data are combined to and used to analyze each subway station, considering the diversity of data, and obtain a passenger flow feature map of different stations, the number of different types of POIs within 800 m, and the situation of surrounding OTO stores. This paper proposes a two-stage framework, to identify the functional region of subway stations. In the passenger flow stage, the SCD feature is extracted and converted to a feature map, and a ResNet model is used to get the output of stage 1. In the built environment stage, the POI and OTO features are extracted, and a deep neural network with stacked autoencoders (SAE–DNN) model is used to get the output of stage 2. Finally, the outputs of the two stages are connected and a SoftMax function is used to make the final identification of functional region. We performed experimental testing, and our experimental results show that the framework exhibits good performance and has a certain reference value in the planning of subway stations and their surroundings, contributing to the construction of smart cities.
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Kumar N, Wirekoh J, Saba S, Riviere CN, Park YL. Soft Miniaturized Actuation and Sensing Units for Dynamic Force Control of Cardiac Ablation Catheters. Soft Robot 2020; 8:59-70. [PMID: 32392453 DOI: 10.1089/soro.2019.0011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Recently, there has been active research in finding robotized solutions for the treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF) by augmenting catheter systems through the integration of force sensors at the tip. However, limited research has been aimed at providing automatic force control by also integrating actuation of the catheter tip, which can significantly enhance safety in such procedures. This article solves the demanding challenge of miniaturizing both actuation and sensing for integration into flexible catheters. Fabrication strategies are presented for a series of novel soft thick-walled cylindrical actuators, with embedded sensing using eutectic gallium-indium. The functional catheter tips have a diameter in the range of 2.6-3.6 mm and can both generate and detect forces in the range of < 0.4 N, with a bandwidth of 1-2 Hz. The deformation modeling of thick-walled cylinders with fiber reinforcement is presented in the article. An experimental setup developed for static and dynamic characterization of these units is presented. The prototyped units were validated with respect to the design specifications. The preliminary force control results indicate that these units can be used in tracking and control of contact force, which has the potential to make AF procedures much safer and more accurate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nitish Kumar
- Department of Computer Science, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | | | - Samir Saba
- Department of Cardiac Electrophysiology, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Cameron N Riviere
- Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Yong-Lae Park
- Robotics Institute, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.,Department of Mechanical Engineering, Institute of Advanced Machines and Design, Institute of Engineering Research, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
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Ren Y, Sun X, Liu J. Advances in Liquid Metal-Enabled Flexible and Wearable Sensors. Micromachines (Basel) 2020; 11:mi11020200. [PMID: 32075215 PMCID: PMC7074621 DOI: 10.3390/mi11020200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2020] [Revised: 02/12/2020] [Accepted: 02/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Sensors are core elements to directly obtain information from surrounding objects for further detecting, judging and controlling purposes. With the rapid development of soft electronics, flexible sensors have made considerable progress, and can better fit the objects to detect and, thus respond to changes more sensitively. Recently, as a newly emerging electronic ink, liquid metal is being increasingly investigated to realize various electronic elements, especially soft ones. Compared to conventional soft sensors, the introduction of liquid metal shows rather unique advantages. Due to excellent flexibility and conductivity, liquid-metal soft sensors present high enhancement in sensitivity and precision, thus producing many profound applications. So far, a series of flexible and wearable sensors based on liquid metal have been designed and tested. Their applications have also witnessed a growing exploration in biomedical areas, including health-monitoring, electronic skin, wearable devices and intelligent robots etc. This article presents a systematic review of the typical progress of liquid metal-enabled soft sensors, including material innovations, fabrication strategies, fundamental principles, representative application examples, and so on. The perspectives of liquid-metal soft sensors is finally interpreted to conclude the future challenges and opportunities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yi Ren
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China;
| | - Xuyang Sun
- Beijing Key Lab of CryoBiomedical Engineering and Key Lab of Cryogenics, Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Jing Liu
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China;
- Beijing Key Lab of CryoBiomedical Engineering and Key Lab of Cryogenics, Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: 86-10-62794896
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Kim T, Kim DM, Lee BJ, Lee J. Soft and Deformable Sensors Based on Liquid Metals. Sensors (Basel) 2019; 19:s19194250. [PMID: 31574955 PMCID: PMC6806167 DOI: 10.3390/s19194250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2019] [Revised: 09/24/2019] [Accepted: 09/27/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Liquid metals are one of the most interesting and promising materials due to their electrical, fluidic, and thermophysical properties. With the aid of their exceptional deformable natures, liquid metals are now considered to be electrically conductive materials for sensors and actuators, major constituent transducers in soft robotics, that can experience and withstand significant levels of mechanical deformation. For the upcoming era of wearable electronics and soft robotics, we would like to offer an up-to-date overview of liquid metal-based soft (thus significantly deformable) sensors mainly but not limited to researchers in relevant fields. This paper will thoroughly highlight and critically review recent literature on design, fabrication, characterization, and application of liquid metal devices and suggest scientific and engineering routes towards liquid metal sensing devices of tomorrow.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taeyeong Kim
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34141, Korea (D.-m.K.)
- Center for Extreme Thermal Physics and Manufacturing, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34141, Korea
| | - Dong-min Kim
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34141, Korea (D.-m.K.)
- Center for Extreme Thermal Physics and Manufacturing, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34141, Korea
| | - Bong Jae Lee
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34141, Korea (D.-m.K.)
- Center for Extreme Thermal Physics and Manufacturing, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34141, Korea
- Correspondence: (B.J.L.); (J.L.); Tel.:+82-42-350-3212 (J.L.)
| | - Jungchul Lee
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34141, Korea (D.-m.K.)
- Center for Extreme Thermal Physics and Manufacturing, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon 34141, Korea
- Correspondence: (B.J.L.); (J.L.); Tel.:+82-42-350-3212 (J.L.)
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Villalba-Diez J, Schmidt D, Gevers R, Ordieres-Meré J, Buchwitz M, Wellbrock W. Deep Learning for Industrial Computer Vision Quality Control in the Printing Industry 4.0. Sensors (Basel) 2019; 19:s19183987. [PMID: 31540187 PMCID: PMC6767246 DOI: 10.3390/s19183987] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2019] [Revised: 08/09/2019] [Accepted: 09/13/2019] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Rapid and accurate industrial inspection to ensure the highest quality standards at a competitive price is one of the biggest challenges in the manufacturing industry. This paper shows an application of how a Deep Learning soft sensor application can be combined with a high-resolution optical quality control camera to increase the accuracy and reduce the cost of an industrial visual inspection process in the Printing Industry 4.0. During the process of producing gravure cylinders, mistakes like holes in the printing cylinder are inevitable. In order to improve the defect detection performance and reduce quality inspection costs by process automation, this paper proposes a deep neural network (DNN) soft sensor that compares the scanned surface to the used engraving file and performs an automatic quality control process by learning features through exposure to training data. The DNN sensor developed achieved a fully automated classification accuracy rate of 98.4%. Further research aims to use these results to three ends. Firstly, to predict the amount of errors a cylinder has, to further support the human operation by showing the error probability to the operator, and finally to decide autonomously about product quality without human involvement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Javier Villalba-Diez
- Hochschule Heilbronn, Fakultät Management und Vertrieb, Campus Schwäbisch Hall, 74523 Schwäbisch Hall, Germany.
- Departament of Artificial, Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Informáticos, Intelligence Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28660 Madrid, Spain.
| | - Daniel Schmidt
- Matthews International GmbH, Gutenbergstraße 1-3, 48691 Vreden, Germany.
- Departament of Business Intelligence, Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Industriales, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28006 Madrid, Spain.
| | - Roman Gevers
- Matthews International GmbH, Gutenbergstraße 1-3, 48691 Vreden, Germany.
| | - Joaquín Ordieres-Meré
- Departament of Business Intelligence, Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Industriales, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28006 Madrid, Spain.
| | - Martin Buchwitz
- InspectOnline, Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69469 Weinheim, Germany.
| | - Wanja Wellbrock
- Hochschule Heilbronn, Fakultät Management und Vertrieb, Campus Schwäbisch Hall, 74523 Schwäbisch Hall, Germany.
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Short M, Twiddle J. An Industrial Digitalization Platform for Condition Monitoring and Predictive Maintenance of Pumping Equipment. Sensors (Basel) 2019; 19:s19173781. [PMID: 31480438 PMCID: PMC6749217 DOI: 10.3390/s19173781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2019] [Revised: 08/22/2019] [Accepted: 08/28/2019] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
This paper is concerned with the implementation and field-testing of an edge device for real-time condition monitoring and fault detection for large-scale rotating equipment in the UK water industry. The edge device implements a local digital twin, processing information from low-cost transducers mounted on the equipment in real-time. Condition monitoring is achieved with sliding-mode observers employed as soft sensors to estimate critical internal pump parameters to help detect equipment weasr before damage occurs. The paper describes the implementation of the edge system on a prototype microcontroller-based embedded platform, which supports the Modbus protocol; IP/GSM communication gateways provide remote connectivity to the network core, allowing further detailed analytics for predictive maintenance to take place. The paper first describes validation testing of the edge device using Hardware-In-The-Loop techniques, followed by trials on large-scale pumping equipment in the field. The paper concludes that the proposed system potentially delivers a flexible and low-cost industrial digitalization platform for condition monitoring and predictive maintenance applications in the water industry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Short
- School of Science, Engineering and Design, Teesside University, Middlesbrough TS1 3BA, UK.
| | - John Twiddle
- Scottish & Southern Energy Ltd., Knottingley, West Yorkshire WF11 8SQ, UK
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Pisa I, Santín I, Vicario JL, Morell A, Vilanova R. ANN-Based Soft Sensor to Predict Effluent Violations in Wastewater Treatment Plants. Sensors (Basel) 2019; 19:s19061280. [PMID: 30871281 PMCID: PMC6470776 DOI: 10.3390/s19061280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2019] [Revised: 03/01/2019] [Accepted: 03/06/2019] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) form an industry whose main goal is to reduce water's pollutant products, which are harmful to the environment at high concentrations. In addition, regulations are applied by administrations to limit pollutant concentrations in effluent. In this context, control strategies have been adopted by WWTPs to avoid violating these limits; however, some violations still occur. For that reason, this work proposes the deployment of an artificial neural network (ANN)-based soft sensor in which a Long-Short Term Memory (LSTM) network is used to generate predictions of nitrogen-derived components, specifically ammonium ( S N H ) and total nitrogen ( S N t o t ). S N t o t is a limiting nutrient and can therefore cause eutrophication, while nitrogen in the S N H form is toxic to aquatic life. These parameters are used by control strategies to allow actions to be taken in advance and only when violations are predicted. Since predictions complement control strategies, the evaluation of the ANN-based soft sensor was carried out using the Benchmark Simulation Model N.2. (BSM2) and three different control strategies (from low to high control complexity). Results show that our proposed method is able to predict nitrogen-derived products with good accuracy: the probability of detecting violations of BSM2's limits is 86%⁻94%. Moreover, the prediction accuracy can be improved by calibrating the soft sensor; for example, perfect prediction of all future violations can be achieved at the expense of increasing the false positive rate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ivan Pisa
- Department of Telecommunications and Systems Engineering, Escola d'Enginyeria, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain.
| | - Ignacio Santín
- Department of Telecommunications and Systems Engineering, Escola d'Enginyeria, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain.
| | - Jose Lopez Vicario
- Department of Telecommunications and Systems Engineering, Escola d'Enginyeria, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain.
| | - Antoni Morell
- Department of Telecommunications and Systems Engineering, Escola d'Enginyeria, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain.
| | - Ramon Vilanova
- Department of Telecommunications and Systems Engineering, Escola d'Enginyeria, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Bellaterra, Spain.
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Hughes J, Iida F. Multi-Functional Soft Strain Sensors for Wearable Physiological Monitoring. Sensors (Basel) 2018; 18:E3822. [PMID: 30413011 DOI: 10.3390/s18113822] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2018] [Revised: 10/26/2018] [Accepted: 10/31/2018] [Indexed: 01/23/2023]
Abstract
Wearable devices which monitor physiological measurements are of significant research interest for a wide number of applications including medicine, entertainment, and wellness monitoring. However, many wearable sensing systems are highly rigid and thus restrict the movement of the wearer, and are not modular or customizable for a specific application. Typically, one sensor is designed to model one physiological indicator which is not a scalable approach. This work aims to address these limitations, by developing soft sensors and including conductive particles into a silicone matrix which allows sheets of soft strain sensors to be developed rapidly using a rapid manufacturing process. By varying the morphology of the sensor sheets and electrode placement the response can be varied. To demonstrate the versatility and range of sensitivity of this base sensing material, two wearable sensors have been developed which show the detection of different physiological parameters. These include a pressure-sensitive insole sensor which can detect ground reaction forces and a strain sensor which can be worn over clothes to allow the measurements of heart rate, breathing rate, and gait.
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Astreinidi Blandin A, Bernardeschi I, Beccai L. Biomechanics in Soft Mechanical Sensing: From Natural Case Studies to the Artificial World. Biomimetics (Basel) 2018; 3:E32. [PMID: 31105254 PMCID: PMC6352697 DOI: 10.3390/biomimetics3040032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2018] [Revised: 09/14/2018] [Accepted: 10/12/2018] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Living beings use mechanical interaction with the environment to gather essential cues for implementing necessary movements and actions. This process is mediated by biomechanics, primarily of the sensory structures, meaning that, at first, mechanical stimuli are morphologically computed. In the present paper, we select and review cases of specialized sensory organs for mechanical sensing-from both the animal and plant kingdoms-that distribute their intelligence in both structure and materials. A focus is set on biomechanical aspects, such as morphology and material characteristics of the selected sensory organs, and on how their sensing function is affected by them in natural environments. In this route, examples of artificial sensors that implement these principles are provided, and/or ways in which they can be translated artificially are suggested. Following a biomimetic approach, our aim is to make a step towards creating a toolbox with general tailoring principles, based on mechanical aspects tuned repeatedly in nature, such as orientation, shape, distribution, materials, and micromechanics. These should be used for a future methodical design of novel soft sensing systems for soft robotics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Afroditi Astreinidi Blandin
- Center for Micro-BioRobotics, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Pontedera, 56025 Pisa, Italy.
- The BioRobotics Institute, Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, Pontedera, 56025 Pisa, Italy.
| | - Irene Bernardeschi
- Center for Micro-BioRobotics, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Pontedera, 56025 Pisa, Italy.
| | - Lucia Beccai
- Center for Micro-BioRobotics, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Pontedera, 56025 Pisa, Italy.
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